Color displays are becoming more popular in electrical systems, e.g., a thermostat. Moreover, a color display can help a user to better understand displayed information provided by a modern programmable thermostat. However, a color display's application with a battery powered thermostat is typically limited for several reasons. First, a color display, e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD), typically requires a backlight that may consume a significant amount of power in relation to the battery's power capacity. Other self-illuminated displays, e.g., an Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED), typically require higher power than ordinary black and white LCD. Also, associated processing for a color display is typically significantly larger than associated processing for a black and white display. The additional processing increases the power consumption of the processor.
Because of the enhanced capability provided by a color display in a thermostat, there is a real market need to reduce the required power consumption by the thermostat. Moreover, the expected lifetime of the color display can be extended to better match the expected service time of the thermostat.